Growing popularity of e-cigarettes spurs debate

Josh Putzer, of Appleton, tries out a new flavor for his electronic cigarette while being helped by employee Alex VanderWielen at the eVapor electronic cigarette shop in Appleton.
(Photo:
Dan Powers/Post-Crescent Media
)

Four years after the ban on indoor smoking took effect in Wisconsin, health advocates have turned their attention to electronic cigarettes.

A poll conducted by the American Cancer Society in conjunction with the fourth anniversary of the ban found that 86 percent of respondents support the 2010 law.

The poll also focused on electronic cigarettes — or e-cigarettes — a relatively recent and increasingly popular smoking alternative that isn’t covered in the prohibition on smoking.

The poll found 62 percent of respondents favor prohibiting e-cigarettes in places where smoking is already banned.

Sara Sahli, Wisconsin government relations director for the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, said the organization views e-cigarettes like any other tobacco product.

The popularity of e-cigarettes has grown faster than research, and the effects aren’t known for either the user or those exposed to secondhand vapor, health officials say.

“We’re not willing to say these are any safer than a cigarette at this point,” Sahli said. “It’s wait-and-see.”

E-cigarettes don’t contain tobacco or produce smoke. They consist of a battery and atomizer that heats a liquid infused with nicotine. The inhaled vapor produces a sensation similar to smoking.

Users refer to the activity as “vaping,” as opposed to smoking.

Beth Kempen, a former smoker and co-owner of Appleton’s eVapor shops, said smokers recognize e-cigarettes as a healthier option.

“You feel better, you have your energy back — your taste,” she said. “It’s hard to explain to people who aren’t smokers.”

Laws, regulations floated

The statewide workplace smoking ban took effect July 5, 2010. The city of Appleton instituted its ban five years earlier.

A growing focus on e-cigarettes follows marketing efforts among several companies promoting them as a “smoke anywhere” option now that indoor bans have become the norm.

Justin Meeleus, owner of Appleton’s Kicks Vapor, said some users think e-cigarettes should be allowed anywhere. But he prefers the current environment. Some businesses allow users to puff, but he respects the rules of those who don’t.

His clientele hasn’t been motivated by having a means to sidestep the ban.

“We don’t see many people at all saying, ‘We want to be able to stay inside,’” Meeleus said. “Most want to make a change, quit smoking and have an overall healthier lifestyle.”

No clear picture has emerged from state lawmakers on where e-cigarettes might stand legally compared to other means of nicotine delivery.

Bills failed this past spring in the state Legislature that would have exempted electronic cigarettes from the state’s ban on indoor smoking.

Lawmakers did, however, limit access to e-cigarettes among children and teens.

A state law enacted in 2012 amended the prohibition of tobacco sales to those younger than 18 to include “nicotine products,” thereby covering e-cigarettes. That law made an exemption for federally approved smoking cessation products.

Some communities are taking action on their own.

Last month, Ashwaubenon banned the use of e-cigarettes in places where smoking is already banned. Onalaska passed a similar ban. A number of Fox Valley school districts have either taken action to ban their use or determined that e-cigarettes already fell under existing prohibitions.

“We do expect to see more policies being passed,” said Wendy Vander Zanden, executive director of Kaukauna’s Community Action for Healthy Living.

Rapid growth

Electronic cigarettes have been on the market for less than a decade, but their popularity has shot up in recent years.

A May research paper in the journal, Tobacco Control, reports that awareness of the devices among U.S. adults more than doubled from 2009 to 2011. Industry analysts, meanwhile, project usage of e-cigarettes will move ahead of traditional cigarettes within 10 years, the report says.

Several stores in the Fox Valley sell components and allow customers to try various flavors of liquids before buying them. Liquids and e-cigarettes, both reusable and disposable, are also available at many convenience stores.

Neither the devices nor liquids are subject to regulation. The Food and Drug Administration in April proposed rules that would include an age limit of at least 18 and warning label requirements.

Sahli said those promoting the products as safer despite a lack of research is reminiscent of the introduction of light cigarettes decades ago. In the current unregulated market, there are hundreds of different products, and manufacturers don’t have to include the ingredients on their labels.

“From a public health standpoint, that’s alarming,” Sahli said.

Meeleus acknowledged there are some questionable products out there, mostly from overseas. He said the ingredients beyond nicotine in the liquids he sells have been proven safe and have a number of common uses in food products or inhaler medications.

Proponents don’t expect e-cigarettes to become a trend beyond the population that already smokes.

Kempen said the vast majority of users want to quit cigarettes and many envision putting down e-cigarettes, as well. Liquids are available in different nicotine concentrations — some have no nicotine — which allows users to wean themselves from nicotine.

Vander Zanden doesn’t have an issue with smokers who decide to switch to an electronic product. Research might eventually prove them the lesser of two evils, she said.

Still, public health advocates aren’t willing to take “safer than cigarettes” as it comes to use in restaurants, taverns, stores or other public places.

It isn’t worth taking a gamble on the unknown, Vander Zanden said.

“We don’t know what people are being exposed to,” she said. “It’s probably cleaner (than cigarette smoke), but when we compare it to clean air, there’s a huge difference.”

• E-cigarettes are devices that include a battery and atomizer that heats a liquid infused with nicotine. The inhaled vapor produces a sensation similar to smoking.

• An American Cancer Society poll conducted in June found 62 percent would favor prohibiting e-cigarettes in places where smoking is already banned.

• Wisconsin law probibiting smoking in indoor workplaces and businesses doesn’t include e-cigarettes.

• Currently, New Jersey, North Dakota and Utah ban the use of e-cigarettes in smoke-free venues, according to the American Nonsmokers’ Rights Foundation. Another 11 states have partial prohibitions.

• E-cigarettes are currently unregulated, but rules were proposed by the Food and Drug Administration that would establish an age limit and require labels warning about the potential of nicotine addiction.

• Wisconsin law prohibits sale of the products to those younger than 18.